Production jobs are conventionally performed sequentially, independent of the job's complexity or processing requirements. As such, production jobs are typically processed in the order in which they are received, and each job is conventionally processed in the same manner as every other job. A document production system that processes print jobs may be used as an example. If a print job must be printed, cut and bound, the job is first printed in one print shop department, queued to a second department where the job is cut, and finally queued to a third department where the job is bound. Sequential processing causes significant work-in-progress delays, however, and leads to increased inventory costs.
Methods for optimizing the performance of a document production system using autonomous cells are known in the art. Such methods are described in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,079,266 to Rai et al., the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety. Methods for determining optimal batch-sizes for print jobs are also known in the art. Such methods are described in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,805,502 to Rai et al., the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety. Batch splitting sub-divides a large document production job into smaller sub-jobs. This optimizes job turnaround time by balancing setup time with waiting time between processes. Setup time is especially critical in print environments that utilize continuous feed equipment. The setup time in such environments may be as long as thirty minutes. These delays may significantly impact throughput, especially in light of the high processing rates of continuous feed equipment. In addition, the setup times at each processing station are not always constant. Accordingly, batch-splitting methods are needed to improve the processing flow in environments that have sequence dependent setups.
The disclosure contained herein describes the methods of resolving one or more of the problems discussed above.